1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to a device for adjustment of the level of inclination of the back of a motor vehicle seat.
2. Description of Related Art.
This type of device for adjustment of the level of inclination has an inside and an outside gearing, which are manufactured by forming using cutouts of the metal plate of the device parts. Here the outer gearing has one less tooth than the number of teeth on the inside gearing and one of the devices is mounted on a cam means that can be rotated about the pivot axis, said eccentric means in turn is mounted on the other device. In the device concerned here for adjustment of the level of inclination the cam means are comprised of two wedge segments, which are mounted directly or indirectly on the one device part and are urged apart from each other by means of an energy storage device, most generally a spring, in terms of an increase of the eccentricity in the peripheral direction. By doing so, any play in the gearing and in the mounting is avoided. In a drive of the eccentric means about the pivot axis of the device for adjusting inclination the inside gearing or the one device part rolls on the outside gearing of the other device part, whereby a pivoting is obtained corresponding to the difference in toothing of the device part affixed to the back part vis-a-vis the device part affixed to the seat. Devices of this type for adjusting the level of inclination are, for example, known form DE 30 13 304 A1, DE 199 38 666 A1 and DE 101 44 840 1. In these devices the eccentric rings are joined so as not to rotate with a rotary adjusting member that introduces torque. The carrier means for loading the wedge segments are configured on the eccentric ring. For release of the wedge segments, the eccentric ring must initially be rotated against the frictional force and the forces acting from the backrest on the wedge segments, whereby at the start of the adjustment there is a substantial mechanical friction (tightness).
In these prior art devices for adjusting inclination, stops are provided for the purpose of limiting the load on the spring elements arranged between the wide front surfaces of the wedge segments beyond the spring elements' limit of elasticity. These consist of either projection oriented to each other and formed on the wide front surfaces of the wedge segments or, however, of spacers disposed in the space between said front surfaces. These support elements have the drawback that they make assembly of the spring element more difficult by constricting the installation space between the front surfaces of the wedge segments.
DE 101 57 273 A1 discloses a device for adjusting inclination, wherein the carrier means, in this case a pair of carrier fingers, are arranged separated from the eccentric ring force free in the device for adjusting inclination. The eccentric elements in this device for adjusting inclination are also comprised of an eccentric ring and two wedge segments mounted thereupon. The eccentric ring is assembled from two mirrored disks arranged behind one another and which have mounting holes, into which one of each of the ends of a omega spring engage, so that the two disks of the eccentric ring are biased relative to each other in the peripheral direction. In order to release the wedge segments the rotary adjusting element is turned, so that one of the carrier fingers carries one of the disks of the eccentric ring.